


The Highway

by Kaoru_chibimaster



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Romance, Government Conspiracy, M/M, On the Run, Road Trip, Suspense, Wrongful Imprisonment, somewhat based on a true event
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-06
Updated: 2018-05-06
Packaged: 2019-05-02 22:00:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14554425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaoru_chibimaster/pseuds/Kaoru_chibimaster
Summary: A young man runs into the store, flushed and out of breath. He asks when the next southbound bus is coming, needs to use the phone. Looks shifty, constantly checking the windows, voice shaking, jittery. “The government framed me,” he says. “They’re after me.”





	The Highway

**Author's Note:**

> The weirdest thing happened to me at my job. Guy comes in while I’m at my hour long door shift, asks me when the next northbound bus comes. I tell him it’s in about thirty minutes, so instead he asks me what the schedule for the fun bus to Wendover is. No schedule online so I give him their number to call. Then he calls his dad and tells him he’s in danger. The government apparently framed him for theft and now people were after him, so he’s trying to catch a bus to Nevada…from _Salt Lake City_ to escape. My story ends when he leaves the store and catches the 3:30 bus. But honestly the entire situation was so outlandish that I just had to write about it, so Prompto’s story is going to be a little more interesting. There will of course be changes to fit the narrative and characters.

Prompto’s shifts weren’t exactly the most interesting.

He liked working at the electronics shop, honestly, but the daily grind of coming in mid-afternoon, standing at a counter, and waiting for customers until it was nightfall and time to close shop wasn’t exactly the most engaging job to have. Living in the Insomnia suburbs where people were far away from the inner city action meant that business was slow, and most of the people who came in were elderly who couldn’t figure out how their computers worked, gamers browsing the isles for games, consoles and accessories, and business suits needing a new expensive, top-of-the-line laptop for their stupidly well-paying city jobs. And though it seemed like the amount of variety in their customers would make for a busy store, it wasn’t anywhere near as such. The ‘burbs were almost small town in how quiet and uneventful they were. Not so desolate as the actual small towns down south, but peaceful enough that most business days were just as tranquil as they were right now.

Now it wasn’t exactly the smallest electronics store around, bigger than the home-owned corner shops at least, but it was near empty for a three-pm Saturday afternoon. A few people perused the television section, a family it looked like. One kid was over by the laptops, visibly debating with himself. Prompto had one other coworker in the store at the moment, the other not due for his shift for another hour, and that other coworker was on break. Their manager was in the back, probably watching dumb videos on his phone like usual. Prompto didn’t mind too much. No one was bothering him so he obviously wasn’t swamped with customers. He could take that moment to sit back and relax, and he’d deal with those customers once they came to him.

With that in mind, Prompto grabbed the stool in the corner and dragged it against the wall, plopping himself down on it and leaning back. He debated pulling out his phone and messing around on it. He wouldn’t pull up any video apps since he couldn’t allow himself to get that distracted, but none of those customers looked anywhere near ready to check out and he doubted they’d care if he was on his phone while they browsed. As long as he put it down when they _were_ ready, he’d be fine.

He checked his social media first, scrolling through posts of celebs he followed and mutuals who liked his photos. It was just a hobby, something he’d picked up in middle school to keep his mind occupied, but he’d gotten good enough at it that he’d taken to posting his pictures. Fellow artists and photographers were willing to give him pointers to help him improve and they’d all forged a friendship through their constant interactions. Prompto admired their work, truly. Some of those artists…they could’ve gone professional. And the photographers especially were a source of inspiration to him. Sometimes he emulated their styles and sometimes he experimented with his own. He never got too deep into it; as much as he wished he could go professional with his hobbies, there was no way his parents would accept that. They wanted a normal job for him that would pay the bills and keep him fed. He supposed he understood but…it was still disappointing.

“Um, hello?”

Jumping slightly, Prompto all but slammed his phone down to greet the customer at his counter.

“Whoa, uh…hi! Welcome to Micro Best. Can I help you find anything…”

Prompto trailed off as he really took the customer in. A young man, probably around Prompto’s age, with pitch black hair and wide, frantic blue eyes. His face was flushed and his chest heaved with struggling breaths. Dressed in a simple black t-shirt and black shorts with a hiking backpack slung over his shoulders, he looked as if he’d been sprinting at full speed through the streets. He pointed a finger towards the cellphone Prompto had slammed on the counter and gulped in another large breath before, finally, he spoke.

“Can you tell me when the bus going—” another pointed finger, this time behind Prompto, “that way is going to be here?”

He seemed…jittery. Talking kinda fast, his hand shaking as he pointed it, his eyes flitting toward the window every few seconds. Prompto wasn’t sure what to make of it, but…he wasn’t asking for anything unreasonable. Might as well help the guy out and hope he wasn’t a criminal or something. Probably ran away from home, which would be a little out there for a guy his age, but hey Prompto was still living at home and was not ashamed. And he knew what it was like missing the bus when he absolutely needed to catch the next one.

“Uh, hang on. Lemme look it up,” he said, picking his phone back up and pulling up the map app. He switched over to bus routes and searched up the first location he knew was south of his store, a restaurant he frequented. It brought up the time for the next three buses, the soonest one being in about half an hour.

“Looks like three thirty.”

The other guy cursed under his breath.

“Okay, okay, okay…” he mumbled, eyebrows furrowed. Then a little louder: “How about the charter bus to Hammerhead? Got a schedule for that?”

Honestly Prompto hadn’t been outside of Insomnia since he was a baby, so he knew nothing about any charter buses leaving the gates. He looked it up anyway, though. Dude looked seriously freaked.

“I’m not seeing any schedules on here…” He really wasn’t. There were trip planners on the website and a link to making a reservation, but nothing else.

“They got a number?”

Okay. Maybe it did have something else, because there definitely was a number. Prompto turned his phone screen to display it.

“Is it…uh…is it okay if I…?” the guy motioned towards Prompto’s phone, which instantly made Prompto uncomfortable. He wasn’t sure he wanted this complete stranger using his phone only to run off with it once he had his hands on it.

“I’m not really supposed to be using my personal phone on the clock…” he said awkwardly. Thankfully the guy acquiesced quickly.

“There a store phone? I really need this, man. I’ve lost my car, my phone…shit, what haven’t I lost?”

There wasn’t much Prompto could do about that, but at the very least he had no problem with letting the guy use the store phone. The thing was ancient anyway; still had a cord. He nodded his head towards the phone hanging on the wall behind the counter, watching carefully as the guy stepped behind it and pulled the handset off the base, tugging lightly at the coils. Prompto once again held the number up for the guy to see as he punched it in. And then he went back to doing his job. Except there really wasn’t much to do. The family looking at tvs must’ve decided not to get anything from there as he barely caught them walking out the doors in his periphery. The kid looking at computers was nowhere to be found. Probably in the bathroom as he hadn’t heard the sweep of automatic doors more than once. With no one to help and no other work to do, he went back to messing around on his phone, leaving the map app in the background in case the stranger needed to use it again. Said stranger was speaking lowly on the phone, so much so that Prompto didn’t really catch was he was saying.

And truth be told, he didn’t really want to. That was the guy’s business, not his. Better to leave it alone.

“Hey,” the guy said. Prompto turned his head to find the guy’s finger on the switch hook, staring at him imploringly. “Is it okay if I make one more call?”

“Um, yeah. Go ahead.”

Nodding, the guy typed one more number in, this time from memory, before turning away again and speaking in low tones. Now curious, Prompto kept his ear open, catching snippets of conversation on the guy’s end. Normal at first, with what sounded like a chat with his father letting him know he was alright.

And then it got…weird.

“Yeah I—look Dad, I need your help…yes, I’m in danger…I think they’re after me…”

…Okay, so maybe Prompto did let a criminal in the store. It was mildly frightening, but Prompto’s manager was still in the back room, literally only a few feet away behind a closed door. He wasn’t completely alone. Plus, his coworker would be finishing her break soon enough, and then he could signal her to call the police if he needed to. The guy paid no mind to Prompto’s inner dilemma, finishing up his phone call with his father before hanging up, sagging against the counter tiredly. He peeked back at Prompto after a short, quiet moment, an unreadable look in his eye.

“I know you probably think I’m up to no good,” he eventually started. “but I swear to you I’m not.”

Prompto was going to regret this, he just knew.

“What happened?”

Sighing, the guy turned to face Prompto fully, still leaning against the counter. He studied Prompto for a silent beat, eyeing him up and down skeptically.

“You’re gonna think I’m insane.”

Deeper down the rabbit hole. “Try me.”

Silence once more before the guy finally began.

“Look. I know this sounds crazy. A week ago and I would’ve thought the same damn thing, but I swear to the gods I’m telling you the truth. I was set up by the government.”

Not a good sign. Definitely not the best way for a tale to begin if this dude wanted Prompto to think he wasn’t crazy.

“They framed me for stealing the crown of Lucis,” he continued. “You probably know it: it’s an old relic from centuries ago when the last king died. Heavily guarded in the Citadel, near impossible to get to. I wouldn’t have reached a tenth of the way if I had actually tried to go after it, so it’s not exactly the easiest crime to pin on someone like me. But it’s the _government_. They could pin anything they want as long as it means they can get me in custody.

“There are people after me. They’ve been isolating me from my friends and family, trailing me when I go to and from work, they’ve evicted me from my apartment with no warning, they’ve taken my car, all my belongings… They even set my buddy up. Had one of our ‘acquaintances’ give him a counterfeit paper note, and then sent the police straight to his door before he even had the chance to spend it. Now he’s in jail with a sixteen grand bail payable only in cash. I can’t trust anyone, even my own dad can’t help me. Says he thinks I’m guilty. I think they got to him already in an attempt to get to me. I have a contact outside of the city who might be able to help, but I need to catch that charter out to Leide or I’ll be down shit creek.”

It was nonsense as far as Prompto was concerned. Sounded like the guy was tripping out on drugs, honestly. But still he sounded so sincere. Even his voice was shaking as he hurried through his explanation in a low tone. He constantly peeked up at the windows, more frantic now that time was running out for him to catch that bus. Eleven minutes now. He’d have to hurry, and that was just the county bus. Prompto didn’t even know if he got any information on the charter. He still couldn’t believe it though. The government, of all things, _framing_ this guy for _stealing the crown of Lucis_? Sounded like something out of a cheap spy movie! It was ludicrous!

It sent up red flags nonetheless when the guy ducked down behind the counter. Turning to see what had caught his eye, Prompto saw police cars cruising into their parking lot. An asinine story the guy had given him, but he was telling the truth about being in trouble with the law if that ominous sight was enough to go by.

“You got a back exit in this place?” the guy whispered, his breathing spiking. It looked like he was about to start hyperventilating. Whatever it was he really did, he looked terrified, and Prompto couldn’t in all good conscience just hand him over to the police. He’d take the guy outside and then head back into the store and pretend he never saw him. Maybe it’d buy him enough time to get his manager to trash the store camera footage.

“C’mon, this way,” he said. Prompto really didn’t know what he was getting himself into, but he was gonna do it. He guessed he was too nice to say no to a fella in need. Pocketing his phone and leading the way, he snuck the guy to the back of the store, hiding him easily behind shelves of clearance electronics and junk that hadn’t been thrown out yet. The emergency exit thankfully didn’t set off alarms when it was opened, but it would ping the manager so they’d have to be quick. Pushing the door open, he ushered the guy outside in hopes that he would simply sneak out from the small alley behind.

No sell. Prompto yelped quietly when the guy grasped his arm in an iron grip, pulling him along.

“I don’t really know my way around this area. I’ll need you to help me get out.”

Dammit. Now Prompto really had gotten himself in a bad situation.

He caught the silhouette of his coworker leaning against the bricked back wall of the alley, raising an eyebrow at him as a cigarette hung loosely between her lips. Pausing awkwardly, he wracked his brain for a believable excuse before blurting out the first thing that came to mind.

“It’s—I, uh—boyfriend?” he shrugged, hoping his voice wasn’t shaking as much as the guy’s had. To his credit, he played the part, sliding his hand down until his fingers threaded through Prompto’s. His grip was just as tight, and still trembling. A testament to how scared he was.

“Whatever, you coulda waited until I was done before coming out here to fuck your bf,” she groaned, rolling her eyes as she tossed the cigarette onto the ground, stamping it out before she lumbered back inside. No doubt she’d notice the police cars as well soon enough.

“This way,” Prompto whispered to the guy. “There’s a side alley that leads to another bus stop. The bus turns a street down from here anyway, so we should be good.”

Pulling the guy by his hand, Prompto led him to that very side alley that he used as a shortcut when he didn’t feel like driving and took the bus to work instead. As convenient as it had been to him then, it was even more so now. They jogged down the asphalt, Prompto poking his head out at the exit to see if any police were in sight on that side of the street. None. At least none in his immediate vision but they’d have to work with that. They were on borrowed time and the bus was two street lights away now, a little earlier than usual. They’d have to jaywalk, otherwise they’d be stuck at the crosswalk and by then the bus would’ve passed the stop.

They made a run for it.

A couple of cars honked at them as they sprinted across the street, the light green again as more sped towards them, and Prompto cringed inwardly at the unwanted attention he knew that would draw. The guy seemed to notice it to, physically jumping at the sound. Thankfully, it didn’t hinder them and they made it across. They scanned the streets for police lights, kept their ears open for sirens, and nothing came. The bus arrived just in time for them to hop on, Prompto flashing his monthly pass (a real help for someone with a crap car) and the guy dug into his pockets for change. At the very least he had enough for the trip, though Prompto wondered if he’d thought to carry enough cash for the charter. They’d have to worry about that later, right now Prompto was stuck on the bus with a crazy dude who was probably on drugs, going into stores rambling about government conspiracies. He was probably now caught up in something actually illegal and he was sure once his parents found out, they’d probably murder him. He really did not need this on his permanent record.

“We’re safe,” the guy says, finally relaxing as he leaned back in his seat and exhaled slowly. With the stress lines gone from his forehead and the twitchy demeanor forgotten, he looked like a normal guy. Too bad Prompto knew he was anything but.

“Says you. Now I’m stuck with some crazy stranger in the middle of his getaway stint!” Prompto exclaimed, lowly of course so as to not disturb the other passengers, throwing his hands up dramatically.

“Ha,” he laughed humorlessly. “I knew you wouldn’t believe me. I’m not lying though. Got no reason to. You’ll see soon enough.”

“I don’t want to see at all, dude! I don’t even know you and now I’m your partner in crime!”

The guy held out his hand for Prompto to shake, and, after considering it for a moment, Prompto tentatively grabbed it. They’d already held hands anyway, what was the guy gonna do? Electrocute him?

“Noctis,” he introduced himself. “Nice to meet you, Partner-in-Crime.”

“…Prompto.”

“Yeah I know. Nametag.”

Grimacing, Prompto pulled his hand away and unpinned his nametag, sticking it in his pocket. The guy—Noctis—only grinned minutely.

“Sorry for dragging you into this.”

“Yeah, I bet.”

“No, I mean it. You don’t deserve the hell I’ve been going through. Unfortunately you’re part of it now though, and I doubt either of us are getting out of this that easily. Most we can do is enjoy the ride right now.”

Enjoy the ride. Sure. That’s exactly what Prompto was going to do. Lay back and not think about the police at his work place or the criminal on the run he was sitting next to, making nice with.

Totally relaxing.

**Author's Note:**

> I honest to god think the dude was on drugs, but I figure what he told me made for an interesting story premise (it also freaked me the hell out but thankfully there were other people around at the time).


End file.
